Melania Trump Club

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport

Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (IATA: TPE, ICAO: RCTP) (traditional Chinese: 臺灣桃園國際機場; simplified Chinese: 台湾桃园国际机场; pinyin: Táiwān Táoyuán Gúojì Jīchǎng) is an international airport located in Dayuan Township, Taoyuan County, Taiwan. It is one of four Taiwanese airports with regular international flights, and is by far the busiest international air entry point amongst them. It is the main international hub for China Airlines and EVA Air. Opened in 1979, the airport was known as Chiang Kai-shek International Airport or CKS International Airport until the name was changed in 2006 to its current name.

Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport is one of two airports that serves Taipei and the rest of northern Taiwan. The other is Taipei Songshan Airport, located within Taipei City limits, which served Taipei as its international airport until 1979. Now, it serves chartered flights, most of which are to and from mainland China (see Cross-strait charter), domestic flights, and some international flights.

On November 28, 1987, South African Airways Flight 295 crashed in a catastrophic fire on the Indian Ocean off Mauritius bound to Jan Smuts Airport (now OR Tambo International Airport) in Johannesburg from Chiang Kai-Shek Airport, as it was known then. All 159 passengers and crew were killed.

Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport was one of the airports targeted by the failed Project Bojinka plot in 1995.

On February 16, 1998, China Airlines Flight 676, which was arriving from Ngurah Rai International Airport, Indonesia, crashed into a residential area while landing in poor weather, killing all 196 people on board and six on the ground.

On October 31, 2000, Singapore Airlines Flight 006, which was on a Singapore Changi Airport, Singapore-Taipei-Los Angeles International Airport, Los Angeles route rammed into construction equipment on a closed runway 05R during takeoff from Taipei. The aircraft had lifted off and crashed with 82 fatalities. At the time of the incident, the northern runways were designated 05L and 05R (parallel); the latter has since been reassigned as a taxiway.

The Chung Cheng Aviation Museum (Chinese: 中正航空科學館) is located on the south-eastern area of the airport between the main freeway entrance and the terminals. It was built in 1981 by Boeing under CAA contract. Many retired Republic of China Air Force fighters are represented here. Its purpose is to preserve aviation history and provide public understanding of the civil aviation industry.

Located adjacent the Aviation Museum and the convention center is the Novotel Taipei Taoyuan International Airport, which opened in November 2009. The 360-room hotel is equipped with restaurants, recreation and fitness centers, and a hair salon and spa.